1 Zico was the third professional player in his family. His elder brother Edu, a gifted midfielder unfortunate enough to play in the same position as Pelé, Rivelino and other monsters in the late 60s and early 70s, actually managed the Seleção for three games in 1984, including the famous loss to England in Rio with that Barnes goal.

2 He joined the Flamengo youth system at 14 in 1967 after almost being turned down: thin as a stick, Zico measured only 4ft 9in. The club enrolled him in a programme involving special nutrition and gym work. Zico would repay this by taking Flamengo to heights of which they could only have dreamed at the time, with four league titles and one Libertadores Cup between 1980 and 1987.

3 Adored by Flamengo fans, Zico never really felt comfortable with the practice by groups of supporters to jokingly wish each other "Happy Christmas" to celebrate his birthday (3 March).

4 In 1990, six years before Pelé took the role, Zico became Brazil's first sports minister. He left the post 13 months later after strong lobbying from politicians linked to football authorities kept delaying a parliamentary vote on his project seeking to modernise Brazilian football.

5 No other player has scored as many goals at the Maracanã: he has 333 in 435 games at the Rio stadium.

6 After his success at Fenerbahce, Zico tried to manage in England. He lobbied for the Newcastle job after Kevin Keegan's departure in September 2008. More interestingly, he was once reportedly offered a role as an assistant for Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

7 "Zico" is the abbreviation of a childhood nickname. Arthur Antunes Coimbra was called "Arthurzico" by his family, then it was shortened.

8 His nickname o Galinho, the Rooster, was given him by the Brazilian radio commentator Waldir Amaral, inspired by the quiff Zico had in his early years.

9 Although he never won a World Cup, Zico invariably shows up highly in lists of all‑time greats. In 2000, he was behind only Pelé and Garrincha among Brazilians in Fifa's"Player of The Century" vote.

10 Udinese, the club Zico played for between 1983‑85, has a supporters' group named after him. They take a banner with the Brazilian's name to every home and away game. Zico scored 59 goals in 73 games for the Italian club.